Friends?
by Kittyfox77
Summary: Kyouya's finally getting recognized by his father, but at what cost? When he finally seems to be getting somewhere, one of the most influential men in the world decides to pay the host club a visit. Can he keep Suoh in line long enough to make his future?


It seems that my father has finally come to notice me; that, or he's planning on using me for something.

I highly suspect the latter.

My suspicions were aroused yesterday when I had been eating dinner alone, as I always do. I sat at an ornate, mahogany table; hand carved in France by one of the best in the business, yet the table was never used by anyone but me. Was I lonely? Never. Despite the popular belief of one Tamaki Suoh, a person does not need to constantly be bothered by others in order to be content. I will be the first to admit that I crave my father's attention, but not in a father-son relationship. I wish to make him understand that, despite being the youngest, I will get the farthest in my career. Right now, my father sees me as a nuisance, while my brothers get everything. I know that I've got a long and arduous road ahead of me if I am going to make him see me for who I am- the best business man of the family.

Anyway, I was eating dinner when my father walked in and sat down next to me. I wiped my face of emotion, though I silently questioned his presence as I took another bite of lamb.

"You've been growing well, son. I've noticed how far you have progressed." He started.

I smiled and thanked him, all the while wondering why he had come.

"Tomorrow evening I have an important business partner coming. You will be here at 4 o'clock sharp. Understood?"

I nodded my assent, and he left. That was the first time I had seen him in a month.

…..

Since our conversation (if it can really be called that) the same question has been flowing through my mind at a rapid pace: who was this mysterious business partner? Normally, my father mentions a name or a company when he tells me something about work, usually involving the name of the person whose life he just ruined by buying their company from them. Why would he fail to mention a name the one time it would have been beneficial to me?

This line of reasoning was how my suspicions came about. It would be very like my father to try to test me with this dinner; he would want me to impress his guest with my knowledge of both my father's company and the guest's company. And the only way I would get any information on the guest was if I knew his name. Finding the information would be the easy part, and I already know every aspect of my father's work, so my only obstacle is the identity of the mystery man.

…..

Ahh Suoh. I'm not on school campus for more than three minutes before he finds me. Honestly, I worry sometimes that he's put some kind of tracker on me. It's within his means budget-wise and personality-wise. Note to self: Check later for tracking device.

The differing emotions that hit me every time I see the young man make me nervous about my mental health. I usually find myself caught between trying to throttle him and wanting to call him a bloody genius. There's something in the way that he acts… Despite his total lack of common sense, he somehow knows everything when it comes down to something that he's interested in. Like the host club, for instance.

"Kyoooooouya!" Suoh called, skipping gleefully towards me. I realize just early enough to save myself that he is trying to hug me.

"Don't call my name like we haven't seen each other in years." I quip, stepping to the side just enough to watch the overeager blonde trip over his own feet. I barely manage to suppress a small smirk.

"But Kyouya, I haven't seen you since yesterday!" I glare, causing Suoh to lose some enthusiasm and gingerly take a step back. "Anyway," he looked at the ground and started playing with his hands, immediately indicating that something was going on, "I….We….Ummm…."

"Tell me what's going on. I'm not in the mood for games today." I wasn't exaggerating either. Whatever mess the others had gotten themselves into would have to be dealt with by someone else. Today needed to be spent checking through my father's business accounts in the hopes of finding my man. This exceedingly short deadline was putting my temper on a very short fuse.

"I….Umm…. It's nothing. You'll be at school for club, though, right? I mean, of course you would be there today, of all days. It's not like you ever miss being there, it's just that I felt that I had to ask because-" Suoh's speech went faster and faster as his nerves seemed to get the better of him. I, for the most part, ignored him- my mind already preoccupied with other things.

"No. I'm busy today. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get to class." I pushed Suoh aside, unable to bring myself to bother with him anymore. I vaguely remember him following me, miraculously similar to the way a stray puppy would follow someone, and he kept rambling on, but I never heard a word.

…

Was that the clock? I whipped my head up from my work, nearly knocking my glasses off my face in my haste. I fixed them as I checked the time, finding, to my dismay, that it was three o'clock and I still had no leads. I needed to get home, but I couldn't go without any information.

"Damn it." I muttered, staring at the computer screen in defeat. School had ended more than an hour ago. I thought for sure that would be enough time, but so far I had come up completely empty handed.

"Kyouya?" Suoh called, peering at me with his head cocked slightly to the side. Such an odd habit.

"What are you doing here?" we echoed one another. He laughed; I rolled my eyes and stared at the computer in frustration. This dolt was sucking up my precious time!

"I came because Haruhi said she left her chemistry book in here, and she was all tied up with customers at the time. What about you?"

I wanted to ignore his question, but I knew that would only make him stay longer.

"I'm trying to look something up." I had barely finished the statement before Suoh was looking at the computer screen over my shoulder, uncomfortably close to my face.

"Oh, your family's company? I heard your dad was working with Japan himself. That's just about the coolest thing I've ever heard! Can you tell Japan I'm his biggest fan when you see him? I just love everything about him!" Suoh gushed, pulling away from the computer and swirling around on one foot as he spoke.

Japan? Japan himself was the business partner? Why would my father want me beside him when he dealt with someone as important as Japan? To scare me off?

"How did you know I was going to see Japan?" I managed, somewhere between irked that Suoh knew this before I did, and happy that I had at least gotten the information from somewhere. Of course, it should have been obvious that my father's biggest competitor would know that kind of information.

"Well, there had to be some reason why you were skipping club. That sounded like the best reason to us!"

Of course, there was no such thing as privacy as far as the club was concerned.

"I have to leave." I turned off the computer and gathered my belongings. I absolutely could not be late. "Did you work out whatever was bothering you this morning?" Wait. Did I really just ask him that? What did I care anyway?

Suoh gave me a confused look, apparently as lost by my uncharacteristic outburst as I was. His confusion quickly turned to joy as he chirped, "Yep! All taken care of. Thanks for asking."

As I headed out of the room and down the hallway, his voice echoed from behind me. "Good luck!"

I rolled my eyes, and found myself smiling. What did that guy do to me?

….

I arrived home with plenty of time to get ready, and by 4 sharp I was at my father's side at the same mahogany table that we had been at before. This time, the table was devoid of food, but decorated beautifully in a traditional Japanese style. My family originated from Japan, so I wouldn't be surprised if these were family heirlooms, though I had never seen them before. My father was much more of a future man than one of the past.

I had done my research, and I was just starting to feel smug when I realized something. This table was imported from France, and, though I wasn't positive, I had a feeling that Japan didn't really like France. I was just about to bring this up to my father when there was a knock at the front door, and a maid rushed to answer it. Too late now. I surely hoped that my hunch was wrong about the table, or maybe he wouldn't notice it beneath all of the Japanese antiques.

I had never seen Japan before; in fact, I had only heard of him just recently. Only a small, elite group of society knew of his existence, and even the internet was empty when it came to information on him. He really might as well not exist at all for most people. There had been rumours though, when I was young, about an entity that stood for our nation as a whole. Of course, I never thought twice about them, just making them out to be silly stories. Now though, I imagine most people don't know about him because it would be very difficult for him to live his life with everyone in the country wanting a piece of him for one reason or another. It would be worse than being a regular celebrity.

As I thought of this, I suddenly came to wonder what Japan would look like. I immediately imagined an old, hunched over man in traditional Japanese attire. This idea made sense, of course, since our country was hundreds of years old. I started milling over how this man got around, being as old as he was, when he walked into our dining room suddenly.

When Japan walked into my dining room, and my father and I bowed to him, I did everything in my power to hide my surprise. He was young, exceedingly young. He seriously couldn't be any older than 25! He also wore a military uniform, an old one at that. My thoughts raced as I went through the possibilities, the most promising being that this wasn't actually Japan. Maybe he was just a messenger, sent in his place.

As my head spun, I vaguely heard my father and "Japan" exchange pleasantries. When Japan turned to me, I froze. Normally, I'm not like this. Honestly, I know better. But there was something about this man, something that told me he really was Japan. There was this immense power roiling inside him, and it was all held within his gaze, which was fixed upon me, pinning me in place.

Somehow, my initial fear disappeared when Japan smiled reassuringly at me.

"I'm sorry I'm asking for your time. I know you are generally busy after school, but I'm very interested in what you do." Japan said. He spoke beautiful Japanese, with an old-fashioned accent that I had only heard in extremely old movies.

"It's no problem at all. Please, have a seat." As my father and I allowed Japan to sit, I realized that we were treating him like an old man, and he was acting in kind. It was definitely making my head spin. Was this guy old or young?

Dinner was being served, and I listened intently as my father and Japan spoke business. Multi-tasking, I also wondered how Japan knew that I was busy after school. Was that a lucky guess, or did he somehow know about the host club? It would definitely be odd if he knew about it, but business was business, wherever it came from.

Shockingly, we were barely halfway through with dinner when Japan turned to me specifically and asked, "So, I heard that you are in charge of a business of your own."

I blinked, caught in a reverie of having Japan as a primary business partner. "Why yes," I smiled brightly, "I am the business man for the Ouran High School Host Club." Something told me I couldn't lie or talk my way around this man, so I might as well be proud of my work. I could feel my father glaring daggers at me- he never had approved of the host club.

"A host club? That's interesting. I haven't seen one of those in quite a few years. I was never quite sure if I approved of them or not, but they never gave me any cause to think they were bad. They are not something I would be interested in though." Japan stated tentatively.

"It's quite a lucrative business, so my son tells me." My father added, trying to bring the conversation back to him.

"I'm quite interested in how your son does business, seeing how lucrative it is. Young people are my main buyers right now, especially in the gaming industry. I would very much like to see how young people buy today, and what they are interested in. Would it be a bother if I came to see your business in action?" Japan asked me, completely brushing off me father, whose eyes had widened to the size of the tea cup set in front of him.

"Of course," I beamed, making sure to smile at my father as well, "it would be an honour."

After that, our meeting finished fairly quickly, and Japan left within the hour. Immediately after our guest had left, my father turned to me, violence in his eyes.

"I don't know how this happened," he pointed at me menacingly, "but you had better not screw it up. I expect great things from you, but if you ruin this, you ruin any chance you have." I nodded, feeling the pressure creep up a notch. Those dolts at the club were sure to offend Japan in some way, and then my chances at success with my father would be ruined. This wasn't a good idea at all. What had I been thinking when I agreed? But then again, how could I say no to a request from Japan?

I agonized over the idea all night. Japan had said that he was coming tomorrow. What was I going to do?

Well, at least he didn't notice the French table.

….

I woke up after my alarm had been going off for twenty minutes. I had put it on snooze at least twice, and the third time I just threw it against the wall. I knew today wasn't going to be a good day because instead of breaking, my alarm continued to go off, and now the only way to turn it off would be to retrieve it from the other side of the room.

I was in so much hot water.

….

At school, Suoh, as usual, managed to find me before I had even made it inside the building.

"Did you say hi to Japan for me?" he chattered, excited as always. Oh, lucky him. He was going to get to meet one his favourite people. Oh crap, that was not going to be good for me.

"Alright, Suoh. Listen up." I pushed him up against a wall, out of the way so no one would see us or overhear us.

"Kyouya?" he asked, doing that quirky head turn again.

"I need you to stay calm and do exactly as I say today. This is exceedingly important for me, and for everyone else. Japan is coming to see our club today." I explained threateningly. I watched as Suoh's eyes widened, and his excitement caused him to fidget in my grip.

"This is so exciting! We have to tell the others! We need to get decorations!" Suoh started spurting things out, and I nearly had to shout to get his attention.

"Wait. Gather up the others during lunch. We need to lay- I need to lay some ground rules. This needs to go perfectly, Suoh, or both the club and everyone's futures, may be in jeopardy."

"What? Why, I don't under-" The first bell rang, cutting him off mid-sentence.

"Just do it." I muttered, letting him go and rushing to make sure that I wasn't late, that would be all I need to make today even worse.

…

Lunch came, and the entire host club was gathered in music room 3. They all stood with eyes wide in wonder as they heard the news about Japan. Haruhi automatically looked skeptical since she was the only one who had not previously been aware of the man's existence.

"Wait, are you guys talking about that weird story that people used to spread around? You didn't actually let Tamaki talk you into this, did you?" She looked at me pointedly.

"Do you really think I would let Suoh fool me that easily?" She almost spoke up to answer this question, but I cut her off. "If it will ease your troubled mind at all, I met with this man yesterday. I can assure you with all seriousness that Japan is as real as you or I." Haruhi continued to appear disbelieving, but she argued no further.

"Alright, there are some ground rules that need to be set. These rules must be followed at all times. Understood?"

…

Club was about to start, and I could do nothing but pace. I would pace for a moment, realize something else needed to be done, get it done, and then go right back to pacing. If I had one of my doctors come in right then, I'm sure they would have told me that I was having a heart attack. I hadn't been this stressed in quite some time, and I don't think lashing out at the others was the best way to cope. Looking back on it, I vaguely remember making Honey-sempai cry. That was a minor detail though, something easily overlooked when I realized that my entire future was on the line…. I paced all the more furiously.

Japan knocked on the door of music room 3 precisely fifteen minutes after club had started. I had already informed the guests that an important guest was coming, and that their hosts may be pulled away from their appointments. To make sure the ladies would stay happy, I offered them a few gifts for their patience. The gifts were also insurance in return for their full cooperation today.

Now the only thing I had to worry about, hopefully, was Japan himself. I rushed to open the door, stopped myself right beforehand and straightened myself out, and then opened it with all the humble grace I could muster.

Japan seemed pleased with the decorations that we had put up. Suoh had made sure that I ordered the best of the best in Japanese antiquities. Everything was authentic, from the tea sets to the cherry blossoms. I felt myself relax a small fraction as Japan smelled a cherry blossom that had floated down from one of the many trees spread across the room.

"It is beautiful, what you have done here." He commented quietly, seeming to take in the serene atmosphere we had placed with care. I figured this would be perfect, seeing how calm and careful his personality was when we met.

I smiled politely and began to lead him to some of the club members when I heard an unfamiliar voice. The voice wasn't speaking in Japanese either.

Japan turned toward the voice as his eyes widened. From his expression I realized two things: one, he knew who the owner of the voice was; two, he had not been expecting said person. I sincerely hope this didn't reflect badly on me somehow.

"French?" I muttered under my breath in surprise. I turned around to check, but Suoh was still with his guests on the other side of the room. I didn't know anyone else who could speak French…..

The idea hit me like a bag of bricks- France. But why had France come here? I eyed Japan, who was furiously glaring at the door. It was the most emotion that I had seen from the country, and it almost sent shivers down my spine. I could still feel that immense power coming from Japan in waves, almost like an essence. I had never experienced anything like it, and it worried me thinking what that power could do if it was channeled toward something that the country was angry at- like France.

"Why hello there, my friend Japan. How have you been?" a man with long blonde hair called jovially in French.

"Francis-san, we saw each other yesterday." Japan pointed out bluntly, also in French. France ignored the jibe easily, and came straight towards me, hugging me as if we were old friends. I had realized almost immediately that I was now in the presence of two great nations, instead of just one. It seemed that today really was going to get worse.

"And this must be the young man that you mentioned! Quite the handsome one I see. It's no wonder that he became such a womanizer." He poked at me and laughed in a loud, irritating voice. A few of the guests nearest to us looked over, but I smiled reassuringly and motioned for them to go back to whatever it was that they had been doing. Afterwards, I tried to, as gently as possible, explain that I was, in fact, not a womanizer, but the strange man cut me off before I had the chance to save face.

The man pulled away from me suddenly and stuck out his hand. I looked at it for a moment, and then realized I was supposed to shake it. I felt highly disoriented from all this madness, and I feared that my mind wasn't keeping pace. As we shook hands, the strange man finally explained his presence to Japan and I.

"You see," he gave me a questioning look, and I realized he did not know my name- I provided it quickly, "Kyouya, I went to a meeting with this boring lot," he thumbed Japan, "yesterday afternoon. At the meeting, he came up to me asking about some table that he liked, apparently he had seen it at your house."

_Dammit,_ I thought, _I knew that French table at the house would come back to haunt me._

"After explaining what the table looked like, I asked where he had seen it, and then we got into a whole conversation about you. I was just as interested in this whore club-"

"Host club." I interjected very, very quickly. (This was all happening in French, which made me a little less nervous about that comment.)

"What?" the man looked surprised that I had stopped him mid-sentence.

"It's called a host club. It's been a part of Japanese culture for quite some time." I explained, trying to make the club sound more valid than it probably was.

"Oh…" the stranger said slowly, "Well, whatever. Anyway, so when I heard about this club, I decided that I just had to come and see it for myself."

"France." I said dumbly. He looked at me expectantly, but I was thinking, not really calling his name.

I was thinking of the perfect person to occupy France's time. Someone who spoke French, since obviously France did not speak Japanese or he did not feel comfortable speaking it, and was professional at keeping people pleased. Tamaki Suoh.

Perfect. Now I knew exactly how I was going to please the two countries. A few of the guests wouldn't be pleased that they're losing Suoh for the day, but that's a price I was willing to pay for my future.

"Could you please wait here for a moment?" I asked the countries politely, still in French.

As quickly as I dared, I made my way over to Suoh. I hated that it felt like I was asking him for a favour, but he was my only option, and it wasn't even a particularly bad option.

"Suoh, I require your assistance." I whispered in his ear. To the ladies, I offered my sincerest apologies in taking away their favourite host club king, and the next time they came there would be a special surprise for them.

"Oh, I love surprises! What's the surprise going to be?" Suoh asked as we made our way back to the countries.

"Your surprise is just up ahead. Now, promise me you'll act at least somewhat civilized." I was practically begging at this point. I couldn't screw this up. I just couldn't. Of course, out loud, I just sounded exasperated.

"Okeydokey!" I gave Suoh a confused glance. "Oh, I learned it on a commoner's T.V. show. It's all about-" He paused mid-sentence as we came upon France and Japan. He stared, mouth agape, as both countries also gave him a once-over.

Grabbing him roughly by the shoulders in order to knock some sense into him, I smiled kindly at the countries as I introduced the host club king. Each looked at me in shock for a moment.

"I don't know about Japan over here, but I was under the impression that you were in charge of this lovely establishment." France said.

Tamaki's jaw was nearly on the floor after hearing spoken French, and I told him under my breath that the man was indeed France himself.

Returning my attention to the countries, I explained myself. "Mr. Tamaki Suoh here was the one who came up with the idea of having a host club, and he is the most asked for host amongst our guests. I am in charge of all financial affairs, though I do take clients as well. I'm sorry for any miscommunication." I bowed to show my respect, though I had a feeling the gesture was lost on France.

"We understand. Thank you for the information." Japan said, as polite and calm as ever, but still in French.

"Suoh here will gladly show you around, sir." I told France as I pushed Suoh towards him. "And I will show you around, so your tour may be a bit more personal." I led Japan away from Suoh and France; already they were speaking together conspiratorially in a French that was so fast that I could barely understand it.

"You speak French very well young man, but it appears that your friend has more experience than you." Japan pointed out to me, switching back to Japanese fluidly as I pointed out where the customers usually spent their time.

"Yes, he was actually born in France, giving him quite the advantage over me in that language." I smiled politely.

"I see. That explains the flawless accent… Now, how do you get these young people to come back every week? I've found that each generation seems to have a shorter attention span than the one before it."

…..

(Tamaki's P.O.V.)

"Y-You're France?" I stumbled on the words, my excitement nearly chocking me. I was talking to France! This was almost cooler than meeting Japan!

"Why yes, dear boy. I'm France, the most beautiful country to ever exist! Though, none of the male countries ever seem to want to understand that." France quickly went from happy to irritated as he thought of how often England made fun of him.

"Well, that's silly! Everyone knows that France is the most beautiful country! I should know, since I was born there." I explained.

"Why of course! And that is why your French is so beautiful. Not a spot on your accent, unlike your little Japanese friend there. His accent made me want to vomit." France pulled a face.

I laughed. "Oh, don't be so hard on him! He means well! I've never been able to tell him that his accent was terrible- Kyouya likes to think he's the best at everything." I whispered the last bit, fearing that Kyouya would somehow overhear my words.

"Well, come on then. Show me your fabulous club filled with beautiful women!"

…..

As I showed France around the club, he seemed to be more and more impressed.

"You are very good at explaining this whole business. I guess your Japanese friend was right, this really isn't a whore club."

"A what? Of course it's not! I would never want to offend a woman like that! Our job as the host club is to make all of our guests happy, no matter what! We're not disgusting!" I explained rapidly.

"I see that now. I was mistaken. I find your club to be a wonderful thing though, don't get me wrong. It's just not what I expected."

Not entirely sure if that was a compliment or not, I smiled anyway.

…..

(Kyouya's POV)

I had been doing everything in my power to keep the two countries visiting the host club away from one another, since France seemed to irk Japan to no end, but, unfortunately, music room 3 wasn't endless. After some time of business explanations, France and Tamaki ran into us. Fortunately, I was a lot less freaked than I had been before, and I remembered my manners when I saw France again.

"I hope Suoh is treating you well." I said to France, remembering to switch to French again.

"Oh, Tamaki? Yes, he's taught me quite a bit in my short stay. I guess this really isn't a whore club like I expected. It's a shame really, I think you could do well with that."

"That would also be illegal, being that they are all underage." Japan quipped, giving France a dirty look.

"Well no need to be a party-pooper! It would've been fun is all I'm saying!"

"Just because something is illegal, that doesn't make it fun!" Japan said, his voice rising in frustration.

"You're so boring! You've got to lighten up! This is why you'll never be as beautiful as me!" France seemed to be getting irritated as well.

As the two countries began to argue, I eyed Suoh, who was watching the duo in confusion. I needed to stop this quickly, or my future really would be ruined.

"Please, I don't-"

"Butt out!" France snarled at me. "Your French is terrible. Quit speaking to me!"

I blinked in response, completely taken aback by his statement. I stood still for a moment as he continued to argue with Japan. After a few moments of shocked silence, I felt my blood start to boil in anger. How dare he. How dare he ruin my chances at my future by barging into MY club, and then he has the audacity to insult me?

I took a step toward France, who was now sticking his face in Japan's in order to prove some stupid point, and found myself blocked by Suoh.

"What…. Are you doing?" I seethed in Japanese. I was tired of accommodating that French douche.

"I could ask you the same thing." Suoh said pointedly, sounding more serious than I had ever heard him.

"I won't stand for that kind of insult. He's the one who barged in here first." I pointed angrily at the blonde only a few feet away.

"And what good would that do you? Do you want Japan to be even more angry with France? You're a Japanese citizen, and if France gets into a fight with you, you would have an entire country against you. What would that do to your father's business? You know he has important clients in France, don't you?" Suoh reasoned easily.

He was right, of course. I couldn't do that to my father's company, especially if I wanted it for my own some day. Besides that, I'm sure France could kill me on the spot if he wanted to. I forced myself to calm down and think rationally.

As I found my anger subsiding, I realized that I still had a crisis on my hands. Besides having to stop the fight between two superpowers, I also needed to reverse the damage that had already been done by their fight. Otherwise, they would both go home angry, and I would go home poor and futureless.

What could I do though? France wouldn't even listen to me anymore. Suoh was still standing in front of me, giving me an odd look.

"What?" I asked, my voice nearly cracking from stress.

"I've got an idea." Suoh beamed.

"What? Seriously?" How did he have an idea?

"But you're going to have to trust me." Suoh pointed at me, a fake scowl on his face. "Can you do that? I don't think you can."

My patience as thin as it was, I didn't think I could do anything at that moment in time.

"Just do whatever it is before we all go down in flames." I sighed in defeat.

"Allright!" Suoh whooped. I hoped for all our sakes that this turned out all right.

Only a moment or so later, Suoh turned around and walked up to France. The once flamboyantly happy looking country was now practically red in the face from arguing. I was actually surprised that Suoh had steeled up enough nerve to talk to the ferocious looking country.

"France, sir. May I have a word?"

"What do you want? Can't you see I'm busy trying to show _someone_ that my beauty far exceeds everyone else's?"

"But France, don't you see? No one but those of us from France can truly see your beauty. It is a gift that the French alone may possess." Suoh explained. Japan and I watched in awe as France calmed slightly. How did Suoh know exactly what to say? Oh, who was I kidding? He was the host blub king- he always seemed to know what to say. The idea irritated me to no end sometimes.

"But why can no one else realize my beauty?" France suddenly burst into tears, leaning on Suoh for support. Suoh turned to me and ushered me to take care of Japan discreetly.

"Here Japan, let's get you to a seat." I said, ushering him over to an empty table area. It must've been open for the next batch of guests, since there was a fresh pot of tea sitting on the table along with cups. I poured a cup and handed it to Japan, who seemed to be more tired than anything else after his disagreement with France.

"From the best antique tea vendor we could find." I said as he took a sip. Japan's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked at the tea in wonder for a few moments.

"Do you know the name of the vendor, by any chance?" Japan asked, almost pleading with me.

"Yes, Tsuen Tea." I answered, miffed by his reaction.

"Tsuen… That was her name…" Japan mumbled to himself.

"Japan? Are you alright?" I asked.

"Yes. Thank you so much, but I really must be going now." Japan stood and bowed hastily. "You've got a wonderful business going here, and your friend, Suoh was it? He's a good man. Not the best business mind, but I can see him keeping you balanced between work and living your life. That may not seem important now, but only living for your work will ruin you someday. Don't forget that."

I bowed low and showed him to the door.

"You can forward to seeing me as a business partner of yours in the future. Especially with that other young man keeping you on the right path." Japan said as he left. I bowed to his retreating form, my spirits as high as they could go. My future was set! With Japan as a business partner, I was set for life!

He was right about Suoh too, I realized. Without Suoh these past few hours, I would've been royally screwed. In fact, without him these past years, I probably would've lost myself in my continuous goal to best my brothers. I guess it was wrong of me to think of Tamaki so lowly.

Moments later, Tamaki was leading France towards the front doors of the club, speaking to him soothingly about his beauty.

"Thank you, mon ami. I will not forget all your help. You can look forward to seeing me in the future for anything you may need." France sniffled to Tamaki.

"You're welcome! I'm glad I could help!" Tamaki said, and then added suddenly, "Acutally, there is something you can do for me." He looked over at me pointedly. "My friend, Kyouya, he's working to be a big business executive some day and take over his father's company, the Ootari company. Could you, possibly, be a business partner?"

"For that brat?" France asked, glaring at me. "But he's not even French!" I seethed inwardly over the fact that they were talking like I wasn't even there.

Tamaki gave France a face that made most of the girls who visited melt with love, and apparently worked well on grown men as well.

"Alright. But only because it's for you." France agreed.

"Yay! Thanks so much!" Tamaki shouted, hugging the country unexpectedly.

"Alright alright, now let me out of here. I need to get home to my beloved people."

"I'll miss you, mon ami!" Tamaki called as France made his way out.

"Au revoir!" France called, disappearing as suddenly as he had come.

"That was fun!" Tamaki ran up to me and hugged me as well.

"What was that for?" I asked.

"Thanks for letting me see my two biggest idols in the whole world!" Tamaki gushed.

"I didn't set this up for you….. but you're welcome." I conceded. I was kind of glad that I could make him happy after everything that he had done for me.

"Hey Tamaki?" I asked.

"Whoa. Am I in trouble?" Tamaki asked

"What? Why would you say that?"

"You never call me by my first name."

"Well, that was before. I think we're on a first name basis, wouldn't you say?"

"Cool! You are my best friend, after all." Tamaki continued to gush.

"Well…. Yeah. I guess we are. Thanks for everything, Tamaki." I tried to sound as genuine as possible, having really never said anything like this before.

Tamaki hugged me again, and this time, I hugged him back. For real.

"You're welcome."

* * *

><p>AN: For PwndByPinapple's b-day. I'm super late by a jillion years, but I'm hoping that the quality of this piece will make up for it. Or it could be horrendous and I should just give up. One or the other.

So this is about Tamaki and Kyouya's FRIENDSHIP. It's not meant to be yaoi AT ALL. If you want to see it that way, whatever. But that's not what I meant.

Copyright to respective owners and all that jazz.

Hope you like it!

PLEASE COMMENT! Thanks!


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